'Restaurant Impossible': Our top six 'tough love' moments from the Paliani's Restaurant episode

Scott Atkinson | MLive.com"Restaurant Impossible" host Robert Irvine gives a thumbs-up outside of Paliani's Restaurant in Burton. Irvine has been giving the staff some of his "tough love" as he tries to save the struggling restaurant.

BURTON, MI--Let's be honest here.

Sure, we were all holding our breath during "Restaurant Impossible" Wednesday night, rooting to see a great change come over Paliani's Restaurant, hoping to see owner Marina Bufalini turn the place around and thrive.

But we were also watching for something else: to see what host Robert Irvine would say--or, more accurately--what he would scream.

Irvine is known for his "tough love" approach to critiquing and fixing up restaurants during his show, which seeks to turn eateries around in two days with less than $10,000.

And Wednesday, he didn't disappoint.

Here are our top "tough love" quotes from the show:

6. "You should be ashamed of yourself."

Irvine said this to the cooks after trying Paliani's menu.

5. "This is bloody garbage."

After being on the scene for only a little while, this is how Irvine summed up his feelings on the food. 4. "One thing these all have in common: they look, and taste, disgusting."

This comment came shortly after trying all the dishes on the menu. Shortly after, he lined the cooks up for a thorough verbal lashing, crushing mushy vegetables in his hand and yanking dishes off the table with the tablecloth.

3. "You guys have been cooking for 80-plus years, you suck at cooking."

Clearly, the cooks got it the worst on the show. It should be mentioned here that all of them stuck around and put their game faces on as things got tough. Irvine later said they were "teachable."

2. "What is that crap you're serving? Who made that butter thing?"

Irvine yelled this while walking into the kitchen with Davison resident
Diane Woodruff's over-buttered shrimp scampi, which he took from her
while she was eating.

1. "Keep it going, that's good for you. That's one way to lose a $600,000 business and the house that you own."

When Bufalini angrily denied the critique that former employees said on video, Irvine hit her with a sarcastic dose of reality: that her poor leadership was driving the restaurant into debt, and she'd lose the business if she didn't listen.

What were your favorite moments? Tell us in the comments below.

Scott
Atkinson is an entertainment reporter for the Flint Journal and can be reached
at (810) 262-0216 or at satkins1@mlive.com. You can also follow Scott on Facebook
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